Raising the Stakes
by adverb
Summary: Bella and her girlfriends head on a trip to Vegas, but things don't go exactly as planned. With thousands of dollars in debt and no hope in sight, Bella finds help from an unlikely source. Adventure, romance, and casino fun. Edward/Bella. AU - but not AH.
1. Chapter 1 :: Poker Face

**Author's Note:** To keep everything legal, and to keep everything consistent with the Twilight years, Bella and all her friends are all in college in their junior year. In fact, this is where Bella initially met everyone. She never went to Forks High, and thus never met Edward. But of course, just because she never met Edward in Forks doesn't mean she wouldn't meet him elsewhere. ;)

There's a little bit of poker terminology in this chapter. I tried my best to explain it for people who don't understand poker, but keep it believable for people who do. If you're still unclear what a term means, or for general rules on how to play Texas Hold 'Em, refer to the links in my profile.

Finally, a thank you to all of my awesome betas who helped me with my first chapter. There are too many to list this time around, but you all were a big help!

**Please read and review this story. I am new at this so I appreciate all the feedback I can get :)**

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Raising the Stakes

_Chapter 1_

"It's not going as well as I hoped," Bella muttered reluctantly into the receiver of her fancy hotel phone. It was the only way she could think of to downplay her disastrous trip to Vegas. Her mother, Renée, would fly off the handle if she knew the complete truth.

"Really?" replied Renée, concerned. "I thought you would have bankrupted several casinos by now."

Oh, how Bella wished. That certainly was the allure of Vegas, wasn't it? Bright lights, fancy shows, and endless opportunities to make money.

It was supposed to be the trip of a lifetime with her girlfriends, Angela and Jessica. She was going to multiply her winnings by the thousands. But here she was in her hotel room – alone, completely miserable, and horribly in debt with no one to talk to about it.

How had she gotten to this point? How the heck was she going to bail herself out of this mess? And worst of all, why couldn't she stop thinking about the tall, pale guy with the topaz eyes she had met last night?

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**A few months earlier:**

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"Your turn for the big blind," Tyler Crowley informed Bella as he dealt two cards to her. Bella knew exactly what to do, thanks in part to the many nights of poker games before this one. She would have to place a full bet on the table before she even got a chance to look at her cards. Thankfully, the required bet was only two quarters. Texas Hold 'Em with the guys was always pretty cheap.

Bella hoped for something good as she picked up her cards and spread them between her fingers. She tried to hide her disappointment when the numbers finally registered. She held a two of hearts and a seven of clubs in her hand. She had watched enough poker championships on ESPN to know that this was considered the worst hand one could be dealt. It was very hard to get a winning hand from something like this.

Under normal circumstances, Bella would have folded immediately and saved herself the trouble. However, since she was forced to bet for the first round, it made sense just to stay in for now. Maybe luck would be on her side tonight. Bella turned her attention away from her cards, her eyes darting toward the other players at the table to see if she could gauge their reactions.

Eric Yorkie's face scrunched up as he took a look at the cards in front of him. It was obvious to Bella that he didn't have too great of a hand, either. Eric was never able to hide his reaction – good or bad – to his cards.

"I'll call," Eric said, tossing two of his quarters into the pot. "And would you pass the bowl of chips down this way? I'm getting pretty hungry, here."

"Do you ever stop eating?" Tyler joked as he slid the bowl to Eric. "I'm surprised you're not as huge as a whale by now."

Eric scooped up a fistful of chips and shoved them into his mouth.

"It's definitely the cardio," Eric said, his voice muffled from the chips not yet swallowed. He turned to Bella, his mouth still full of food. "You want any?"

"No, thanks," Bella said in disgust. She was sure Eric was oblivious to her disapproval, even though the rest of the guys at the table were chuckling to themselves.

"Smooth, Eric," Tyler said with a laugh. "Okay, Newton. Your turn."

Mike Newton had spent the past two minutes in contemplative silence. Bella noticed that his eyes would dart back and forth between her and his hand. Whenever their eyes met accidentally, he would immediately jerk them back down to his cards. Bella didn't want to say anything, but she did find it slightly uncomfortable.

"Hold on," Mike pleaded, now very focused on the two cards in his hand. He paused between his words as he announced his decision. "I think...I'm going to... call."

Mike threw two quarters into the pot as he glanced up at Bella, flashing her a smile. She pretended not to notice as she grabbed a chip from her plate and ate it very slowly.

"Don't eat that too fast now, Bella," Tyler joked.

"Just throw in your bet, Tyler," Eric called to him. "What's your next move?"

"I'll call," Tyler said as he threw a quarter into the pot. He appeared to be very confident about the cards he was holding, but it could have been a trick. You could never be too sure in the game of poker.

"Not gonna raise, tough guy?" Eric asked, leaning in toward the table with a smile.

Bella was secretly hoping Tyler wouldn't raise the bet this early in the game, but she tried not to show her desperation. He looked up at her as he fumbled with a quarter, not sure what to do with it.

"Not this round," Tyler decided, leaving the quarter in his pile.

"You wimp," Eric called after him.

"Bella?" Tyler asked, turning toward her and ignoring Eric's comments. "Any more money to add to the pile before I deal the first three cards on the table?"

"I'm good," Bella replied, still worried about how she was going to win with her awful hand.

"Alright, baby," Eric announced, rubbing his hands together. "Let's see the flop!"

"Here it is," Tyler declared as he picked up the deck and dealt three cards onto the table: a five of hearts, a six of clubs, and a Jack of hearts.

"What the heck kind of flop is that?" Eric asked, now clearly outraged.

"Hey man," Tyler said, throwing his hand out in front. "I just deal the cards. I can't be held responsible."

"Excuses, excuses," Eric muttered, shaking his head.

"Hey, guys," Mike asked politely, "can we just play the game? By the way, it's your turn to bet, Tyler."

"I know, I know," Tyler said as he fumbled with his stack of quarters. "I'm not going to put anything in right now. Just gonna check. Your turn, Bella."

Bella was still feeling uneasy about her cards. The two and the seven were still pretty worthless, but with the new cards on the table, there was the distant possibility for either a straight or a flush. It was extremely unlikely, but enough to give Bella a little bit of hope.

She evaluated her strategy. If she didn't bet more money, her hand would be obvious.

"I'll bet," Bella said, trying her best to sound confident as she tossed in two quarters. If any of the guys knew that she was staying in the game with this kind of hand, they would laugh. Hopefully, if and when they found out, it wouldn't be too embarrassing. She was not in the mood to be criticized.

Bella turned her attention to Eric to see what he would do. He looked a bit nervous as he glanced over his cards again.

"I've gotta fold," Eric said, putting his two cards face down on the table.

"Now who's the wimp?" Tyler mocked.

"Hey pal," Eric retorted, pointing a finger at Tyler. "You gave me absolutely nothing to work with. Besides, I have a hunch that Bella's got something good."

Bella couldn't help but smile at that comment. Maybe her strategy was working, even though she didn't feel that strongly about her decision.

"I don't know," Mike said in an unsure voice. "You're pretty hard to read sometimes, Bella."

Bella noticed Eric and Tyler exchange mocking glances after Mike's comment. Once again, she wasn't sure how to react, and she instead just avoided eye contact with Mike.

"Would you say," Eric asked, "that you can't read her – can't read her – no, you can't read her poker face?"

"What the heck was that?" Tyler asked with a laugh. "Do you have some kind of stuttering problem we don't know about?"

"Haven't you ever heard of Lady Gaga?" Eric snapped back. "International pop superstar?"

"Uh..." Tyler and Mike both stared at Eric blankly.

"Never mind," Eric said as he shook his head and rolled his eyes. "Clearly no one here listens to the radio anymore."

"Dude," Tyler chuckled, "the only time I listen to the radio is to catch up on the Seahawks."

"Anyway," Mike announced loudly in an attempt to bring the focus back to the poker game, "I think I'll fold as well. My gut is telling me that Bella's got something up her sleeve."

It took all of Bella's strength not to laugh at Mike's ridiculous comment. All she had up her sleeve was two of the worst possible cards. Somehow, she'd convinced not one, but _two_ players to fold early in the game. She wasn't quite sure what it was about her strategy that made them give up so easily. Whatever she was doing, she would try to continue. It was starting to become a real possibility that she might actually win.

"I can't believe you both folded already!" Tyler called out. "You two are the biggest wimps at Seattle University."

"You keep calling us wimps," Eric defended, "but we don't see you making any big moves."

"All right then," Tyler said as he rose from his chair with a huge grin on his face. He put his hands on the table and pushed his entire coin collection toward the pot. "I'm all in, losers. Two dollars and twenty-five cents – that's all my money. I'm not scared of you, Bella. Let's see what you've got."

Bella knew that the hand was almost over. All she had to do was match his bet to stay in the game and that wasn't too tough. She clearly had the biggest winnings pile for the night; rare were the poker nights when this _wasn't_ the case. She still was not very confident about her hand, but with all the money that she won that night, it was worth the risk. Besides, if she folded now and her hand did end up being worthwhile, she knew it would bug her for the rest of the night.

Eric and Mike had huge grins on their faces as Bella tossed in two dollars to match Tyler's bet.

"All right guys," Eric said in anticipation. "Let's see your cards."

Bella knew the protocol. When someone went all in, there was no more betting. All the players turned their cards over and _then_ the remaining cards would be dealt on the table. The tension was high and the boys became very intrigued about how the game would turn out.

Tyler flipped over his cards first: an ace and a king of hearts.

"Nice hand!" Mike complimented.

"You can't do much better than that," Eric agreed.

Not only was it a great hand, but it basically negated the chance of Bella winning with a flush. Her only hope now was a pair of something or a straight. Both possibilities were highly unlikely.

"Hey," Tyler said with a smug look, "you don't go all in unless you've got something good. So Bella, whatcha got? Got some more face cards to keep my royalty happy?"

Bella felt even worse about what she was working with. How the heck was she going to beat one of the best poker hands with one of the worst? If she pulled this off, the guys would worship the ground she walked on. If she didn't, they would never let her live it down. Either way, this was shaping up to be an interesting game.

"It's not that great," Bella began, quickly trying to think of a way she could just forfeit the game and save herself the embarrassment of revealing her cards.

"Less talking, more flopping," Tyler urged, anxious to see what she had.

Bella closed her eyes and put her two cards face-up on the table slowly. She couldn't bear to watch the guys' reactions when the cards finally came into view.

"What!?" Eric laughed. As Bella opened her eyes again, she watched as he almost fell out of his chair. "You stayed in the game with that!?"

"Well, I was the big blind, and it all happened so fast..." Bella trailed off, horribly mortified and looking for the nearest hole to crawl into. This has been such a bad idea. How stupid could she be? Didn't she know any poker strategy at all?

"I think it's safe to say I got this in the bag," Tyler said confidently.

"Hey," Mike reminded him, "the game isn't over yet. Let's deal the rest of the cards before we start declaring the winner."

"Do we even need to?" Tyler asked with a chuckle.

"Just deal the cards, Crowley."

Bella was still extremely embarrassed, but curious to see what the next two cards would be. She was hoping silently that this game would work out in her favor. Hey, at least she didn't have to pretend that she had such a good hand anymore. Now everyone knew the truth. She just had to worry about saving face.

"Here's the turn," Tyler announced, placing the fourth card face-up on the table: a three of hearts.

"Nice!" Eric called out. "You're one away from a flush, Tyler!"

Bella tried to hide her disappointment, but she was sure the guys knew. The fourth card was supposed to help her, not make her look bad by giving Tyler an even bigger advantage.

"It's looking pretty good," Tyler said, clearly not even considering the possibility he might lose.

"There's still one more card left," Mike reminded him, smiling at Bella. Now that he didn't have his cards to keep his eyes occupied, he was staring at her even more.

"Oh really?" Tyler said in a sarcastic tone. "I thought this was a special game of poker in which we only deal four cards instead of five. Thanks for clearing that up."

"Enough already!" Eric called out. "Deal the last card. The suspense is killing me."

Bella couldn't agree more, but she was definitely not sharing Eric's excitement. She wished she didn't take poker so seriously, but she wanted to do her best to play the game correctly. Why had she bet and tried to bluff her way through this mess? Who would have known that Tyler would get cocky and bet all of his money? Why had she taken the chance? She had to remind herself that it was only a few dollars – no big deal. But if that was the case, why was her stomach in knots?

"And here's the river," Tyler said, putting the last card face-up. Bella didn't even bother to look. She knew she had lost the game and didn't feel like looking at all their sympathetic faces.

"I can't believe it!" Eric cried out. Bella had her eyes closed and was sure the last card was just another in Tyler's favor.

"I knew you'd win in the end, Bella," Mike said sweetly. Wait – what was this? Tyler _hadn't _won? Bella was forced to open her eyes now, if only to see what the fuss was about.

As the last card came into view, Bella felt a rush of joy. The last card was a two of clubs; Bella had a pair of twos.

"Dude," Eric said, completely in shock, "I can't believe she beat your awesomely suited King-Queen with a pair of twos. The worst starting hand in the book beat one of the best."

"You don't have to rub it in," Tyler moaned as his face fell. He glanced at the empty spot that had once been his betting money. "I guess I'm out for the night."

Bella couldn't believe how the round had turned out. How had she managed to pull off a win with cards like that?

As she reflected on her amazing luck, she glanced at the clock and noticed the time. It was already well past midnight. She was definitely having fun, but she had quite a bit of studying to do back at the house. Plus, after a win like that, it would be the perfect time for a grand exit.

"I should probably get going," Bella said as she pooled her large amount of winnings and pushed it all into her purse.

"Let me walk you out," Mike piped up, practically jumping out of his seat. Bella felt perfectly comfortable walking the two feet to her car in the dark, but Mike always insisted on being the gentleman.

"Okay," Bella agreed reluctantly. "Bye, guys. Thanks for the chips."

"You should try eating them next time," Eric joked.

"Bye, Bella!" Tyler said with a wave as he glanced back and forth between Mike and her with an anticipatory look.

Bella was almost out the door when she heard Tyler whisper softly to Eric, "Dude – when is Mike going to stop drooling and finally hit that, you-know-what-I'm-saying?"

Bella wasn't sure if she was supposed to hear, but she felt extremely embarrassed. Men could be such pigs sometimes. It was hard to forget how much the guys toned down their sex talk when she was around. They certainly didn't waste any time the moment they thought she had left. Thankfully, Mike didn't notice, as he was completely focused on Bella.

"You did pretty well tonight," Mike remarked once they were outside by her car.

"Yeah, I guess," Bella said nervously. "I think it was just luck."

"I think you've got more than just luck – you've got talent! Have you been to Vegas yet?" Mike seemed very enthusiastic about the idea.

"I haven't been 21 that long," Bella reminded him. "And besides, I won a few dollars playing with the guys. I don't think that means I'm cut out for Vegas."

"I'm serious, Bella. You should really consider it. You never know – it could change your life."

"I'll think about it," Bella lied. Honestly, she thought it was a ridiculous idea. Having a few lucky hands at poker didn't necessarily mean she was cut out for the casino. She thought about how much the guys had mocked her for playing her awful hand tonight. If she tried that in Vegas, they would certainly tear her apart.

"Good," Mike said, placing a hand on her shoulder. His voice started to waver and his eyes had trouble making contact with Bella's. "And, uh... if you ever want someone to practice poker strategy with, I'm free."

"I'll consider it," Bella said abruptly, wriggling her shoulders as she tried to free herself of Mike's grasp. "I really do need to get going, Mike."

"Okay," he said, obviously disappointed with the way Bella was responding to his advances. "We'll have to do this again sometime."

"Definitely," Bella said as she hopped into her car and pulled out of the driveway. She watched Mike get smaller as she pulled away, but he never went back inside. He wanted to make sure she made it home safely, of course. Maybe he was also secretly hoping she would turn around and take him up on his poker offer.

Mike faded into the darkness eventually. Now, alone in her car, Bella finally had a chance to put the night into perspective. It was always fun playing poker with the guys. They were always entertaining and didn't expect Bella to say much. Sure, Mike was a little creepy sometimes, but she knew he meant well. And it certainly didn't hurt to walk away most nights with more money in her pocket than she had started with.

She _did_ have to laugh at Mike's crazy Vegas idea, though. That was the sort of dangerous thinking that got people in trouble. Bella briefly pictured herself behind a Vegas poker table and she chuckled. Maybe it would be fun for a little bit, but wasn't there enough danger to get into here at college in Seattle?

As ridiculous as it was, the thought of Vegas stayed with Bella as she drove the rest of the way home, blasting her music.

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**Thank you for reading my story. If you liked the first chapter, please post a review of it. I plan to post more chapters, soon. **


	2. Chapter 2 :: Change of Plans

**Thanks to all the awesome betas who helped me with this!  
**

**Also, thank you to everyone who left a review. ****You all rock. Keep 'em coming! :)  
**

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"So, how was poker with the guys last night?" Jessica Stanley asked Bella as she admired herself in the department store mirror. Jessica rotated, her long blond hair gliding with her as she examined her potential wardrobe from all possible angles. "And do these pants make me look fat?"

Bella was unsure how to react to Jessica's second question. Why was she, of all people, being consulted for fashion advice? She opted to answer only the first question.

"I came home a winner," Bella said with a smile. She heard her other shopping cohort, Angela Weber, chuckle to herself as she straightened the thin-framed glasses on her nose.

"That's great," Angela said, "Way to show those guys that a girl can hold her own!"

"When do you ever _not_ win?" Jessica asked sarcastically as she rolled her eyes. "And you still haven't told me your opinion about these pants. Did you not answer because they _do_ make me look fat? I thought we were best friends and could be completely honest with each other."

Bella had to keep from rolling her eyes, too. Jessica always insisted on dragging her along on these ridiculous shopping trips, but then would always get discouraged when Bella had no worthwhile feedback. She felt obligated to say something to Jessica, but she wasn't exactly sure what.

"They look great," Angela piped in. "You should definitely get them."

Jessica smiled to herself as she swayed her hips from side to side, testing the durability of the black button-up pants.

"They _do_ look good," Jessica declared. She reached for the price tag sticking out behind her and glanced it over. "_Ugh_! No wonder they look so good. They're sixty bucks."

"Ouch," Bella muttered, not sure what else to say. She didn't know much about high-priced fashion items, since the majority of her shopping was done at thrift stores. That was, when she actually _did_ go clothes shopping.

"You have to tell me your secret, Bella," Jessica demanded as she turned toward her. "You always seem to be winning money. I wouldn't mind making some cash, too, so I could afford a nice wardrobe."

"I think it's just luck," Bella said, slightly embarrassed.

"Don't be modest," Angela encouraged. "You do so well at school. It's no surprise you do so well at poker, too."

"I guess." Bella wasn't sure how the conversation had gotten back to her, but she felt awkward.

"It's certainly enough to get Mike's attention," Jessica muttered to herself. "Maybe you should make poker your new career and drop out of school."

The mention of Mike's name, coupled with Jessica's interesting comment, reminded Bella of her conversation with Mike at the end of the night. She knew she would have to tell the girls her story. Surely they would think it was as silly as she did.

"Actually," Bella began, "Mike mentioned this crazy idea to me the other night as I was leaving. He thinks I should go to Vegas and play some real poker. Isn't that ridiculous?"

Bella expected chuckles out of Jessica and Angela, but they just stared at each other, trading intrigued looks. Bella had no idea what was going on. Was there some sort of memo she had missed?

"Funny you should mention that," Angela said.

What was this all about? Bella was starting to wonder if bringing up Mike's comment had been more trouble than it was worth, especially since she wasn't getting the reaction she hoped for from her friends.

"Remember how we were deciding what to do for spring break?" Jessica asked, no longer focused on the pants she couldn't afford.

"Yeah," Bella said curiously. "We were going to do a road trip and see all the state parks in Washington."

"That was actually _your_ idea," Jessica reminded her. "And seriously? What sane, normal college student goes to a bunch of parks for spring break?"

"I thought we could enjoy the wildlife and scenery," Bella defended. "And it wouldn't cost very much."

She hadn't remembered her friends being this turned off when she had proposed the idea initially. Maybe they were just humoring her until they thought of something better.

"I'm sure it's great," Angela said, "but –"

"But," Jessica interrupted, cutting Angela off, "it's spring break. We do enough learning during the semester. I don't know about you, but I'd prefer to spend my vacation living it up."

"And where exactly do you intend to do this?" Bella asked, feeling as if she already knew the answer. She was extremely disappointed as she mentally watched her spring break plans fly out the window.

"Vegas, baby!" Jessica cried out with an expression of pure joy. Clearly, someone was ready for copious amounts of alcohol, and it certainly wasn't Bella.

"Seriously?" Bella asked. "I don't think this is such a good idea. How do you expect to afford Vegas if you can't even afford a pair of pants?"

"It'll actually be really cheap," Jessica explained. "For my birthday, my mom's boyfriend offered to give me his comp passes for a free week-long stay at the upscale Bellagio hotel. He goes to Vegas so much as it is and gets them all the time."

Those passes were Jessica's secret weapon. Once Bella heard them mentioned, she would have a much harder time convincing her friends not to go. How could any sane, normal college student say no to a present like that? Well, anyone besides Bella, of course. She had to try to do what she could to convince these girls that Vegas was a terrible idea.

"You've never expressed an interest in gambling," Bella reasoned. "The guys invite you to poker nights all the time, but you never take them up on the offer."

"Poker is too confusing," Jessica retorted. "But who said anything about gambling? There's plenty of stuff to do in Vegas besides gamble."

"Like?"

"Like Cirque du Soleil," Angela chimed in. "I know you like fancy shows, Bella."

"I guess," Bella muttered, wondering how Angela had come up with that.

"And there's lots of shopping!" Jessica squealed.

Of course there was lots of shopping. Bella knew the wives had to do something to occupy themselves while the men were at casinos, right?

"And there are wildlife and educational opportunities for you," Angela reminded Bella.

"There are?" Bella inquired. Were these girls sure they were talking about the same Vegas she was?

"There's the botanical garden at the Bellagio," Angela said.

"And the lions at the MGM Grand," Jessica followed up.

"That's not exactly what I had in mind when I said I was interested in wildlife." Bella was getting more disappointed by the minute. Her friends had come adequately prepared for her disapproval.

"And don't forget the heat!" Angela said. "I know how much you miss the heat in Phoenix."

That part was true. Bella really _did_ miss the heat. But if it was that important to her, she could just go back to Phoenix where there were far more pleasurable things to do.

"Exactly how long have you been planning this without me?" Bella asked. Jessica and Angela turned to each other with disapproving looks.

"A while," Angela admitted.

"We knew you wouldn't like the idea," Jessica explained, "and we were right. We _thought_ you might share a vague interest because you play poker all the time, but I guess not."

"I do like playing poker," Bella said, "but that's with friends, and we're only playing with very small amounts of money. I mean, it's only a five-dollar buy-in with an ante of fifty cents."

"I have absolutely no idea what you just said," Jessica said. "But see, _you_ clearly do. You don't have to spend all your time playing poker, you know. There are plenty of things to do in Vegas. And Angela and I will just be turning twenty-one, so nothing is off limits. The world is our oyster."

Jessica certainly seemed enthusiastic about the idea, but what about Angela?

"I think it will be really fun for everyone," Angela said eagerly. "Including you, Bella."

Jessica must have worked her magic on Angela while Bella had been away. She was sure that Angela had been, at one point, vaguely interested in her state parks idea. But how could that ever compare to the glamour and enticement of Vegas? Bella was sure she was out of her league now.

"I don't know…" Bella trailed off, still unsure.

"I don't get it!" Jessica exclaimed. "You seemed so interested in the idea of going somewhere awesome for our spring break when we first came up with the idea. Now we have a solid plan and a way to do it on the cheap, and you want to back out!"

Jessica was definitely skilled at making Bella feel guilty when she wanted to. Bella valued their friendship, but she knew once Jessica had her mind set on something, it was hard to convince her otherwise.

"I'm sure we'll all have a good time," Angela said sweetly.

"I'll take care of everything," Jessica said to Bella. "I'll book the plane tickets, the hotel, and everything else. All you have to do is show up."

Jessica was purposely making this too easy. Bella honestly would not have minded having to do all the planning for her original idea of going to the state parks. She should have known Jessica wouldn't stay interested in a potential learning opportunity for too long, especially when she would be turning twenty-one. Not that being under twenty-one had ever stopped Jessica from doing anything differently.

"Please?" Angela pleaded. "It would be nice to get started on planning something concrete. We've tossed around a lot of ideas, and I want to finally start planning something and not just wait until the last minute."

It was no use; Bella knew she was defeated. How had it even gotten to this point? She'd barely given Vegas a second thought, but now, in the past few days, it seemed to be popping up everywhere. First, Mike had suggested it after another lucky game of poker. Now, her friends seemed to be in on the action. Jessica had done a spectacular job of anticipating and preparing for Bella's disinterest.

Bella felt trapped. With no other option, she hung her head in her hands.

"Fine," she said with a sigh. "You guys can get started on planning the trip. I'll cope somehow."

"Hooray!" Angela exclaimed. "This will be lots of fun."

Bella had no idea what she had gotten herself into, but "fun" certainly wasn't the word she would use to describe it.

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**So, what did you think? Be sure to leave a review - good or bad!** **Thank you!**


	3. Chapter 3 :: So It Begins

**Author's Note: ****Thank you again for all the reviews!**

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If Bella's two best friends were going to drag her to Vegas for spring break, the least she could do was go prepared. While she spent the few months before the trip dreading its impending arrival, she took the opportunity to check out some poker strategy books from the library in an attempt to hone her skills. Hey, it gave her something new to read besides _Wuthering Heights_.

She knew that Mike and the guys would never let her live it down if she went to Vegas and didn't play at least a few games of poker. She understood the table limits were a lot higher in Vegas, so she didn't plan to play very much. She would try just a couple hands, lose twenty dollars or so, and call it a week. Then she would only have to worry about how to keep herself amused the rest of the time; a week-long shopping extravaganza was not going to cut it, no matter _what_ Jessica might say.

All the guys were ecstatic when she reluctantly announced her spring break plans, especially Mike.

"I'm so glad you took my advice!" he exclaimed, his eyes widening with excitement. Bella didn't have the heart to tell him the true story; he seemed so happy to have such an influence on her life that she didn't want to take that joy away from him.

For a brief period, Bella was worried that the guys might try to tag along on her Vegas vacation, but luckily, they didn't. It would have been too big an investment for them. Not everyone could be so lucky – or unlucky, in her case – to have a free week-long stay at the Bellagio to help offset the cost. That didn't stop them, though, from asking Bella to put specific bets on a variety of casino games for them, most of which Bella had never even heard of.

As the trip drew closer, Bella felt herself worry about it more and more. This was a terrible idea. How had a few fun nights with the guys playing poker turn into this big spectacular? Everyone was so excited about Vegas, except her. While most normal college kids couldn't wait for their spring break, she was silently counting the days when the whole ordeal would be over.

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"This place is amazing," Angela said in astonishment. She set her luggage down and flopped onto her luxurious hotel bed decorated with a million pillows and gold trim.

"I know!" Jessica agreed. "I'd heard the Bellagio was fancy, but I had no idea. The whole place just looks like a giant palace. I could stay here forever."

"Good," Bella remarked sarcastically. "Then we won't need to go shopping after all."

"Could you at least _pretend_ to be excited about coming here?" Jessica demanded, shooting Bella an evil glare.

Bella could not believe how Jessica was acting. Was it not enough that she had come here reluctantly after her original state parks vacation had been scrapped? Would she have to check her sarcasm at the door as well?

"C'mon, girls. Let's go out and explore," Angela suggested, trying to break the obvious tension.

The three of them headed out of their hotel room and made their way into the lobby. The place was huge, accented by the never-ending mirrored ceilings. There was so much to do and see. No one really knew where to start, although Bella had a feeling that whatever Jessica wanted to do involved shopping bags and credit cards.

As they made their way through the hotel, they eventually came to the poker tables. Bella knew you couldn't walk two feet in any Vegas hotel without running into a casino game of some sort. The exit for the casino, however, was much more difficult to find.

"Look!" Jessica exclaimed. "It's poker!"

Bella couldn't believe Jessica had the audacity to point out something so obvious. Bella had played poker all the time with the guys; wouldn't she have known what it looked like in a casino?

"You should play," Angela encouraged.

"I don't know..." Bella replied hesitantly. She had only allocated herself a minimal amount of poker playing for the trip, and now didn't seem like quite the right time. She also wasn't sure she'd feel very comfortable with her friends watching over her shoulder, especially if she had to explain all the intricate details.

"I want to go shopping," Jessica declared. "I think we passed some stores a little bit ago."

Of course Jessica was already getting bored. If it didn't involve putting an item on credit, it would apparently not hold Jessica's interest for long.

"How about Jessica and I go browse the stores," Angela began, "and you can stay here, Bella, and play some poker? We won't be long. I'm getting kind of hungry."

Bella wasn't really that interested in playing poker at the moment, but between that and the other option of going shopping, the choice was clear. She had a feeling that a lot more shopping was in her future – most likely consisting of endless outfit critiquing. She should avoid it now while she had the opportunity. Plus, if they were only gone for a little bit, she wouldn't have to play very many games or worry about losing too much money.

"Okay," Bella agreed. It wasn't her ideal choice, but _anything_ was better than shopping.

"Great!" Angela said. "We'll meet you back here in a half an hour. Don't win too much money, now, or we'll make you pay for dinner."

Angela was, of course, kidding. But Bella never underestimated Jessica and her ability to hold her to something like that. She hadn't expected to win much of anything, but at least it was something to do. She would be able to tell all the guys back home that she'd had the Vegas experience, and that would be that.

Bella took a deep breath, walked over to one of the poker tables, and plopped a couple of twenty-dollar bills onto the table in exchange for a few colored chips. If she walked away with even half the money she started with, she would consider the night a success.

***

The half hour Angela had originally promised passed so quickly that Bella didn't even realize it had really been closer to an hour that the girls had been gone. She couldn't believe all the fun she was having at the poker table – more fun than she had originally expected. Everything seemed to have come so naturally to her.

She kept getting dealt an amazing combination of cards. A straight, a flush, a full house – every hand was a winner. There were men of all shapes and sizes with her at the table. They collectively grumbled, fancy drinks in hand, when Bella would take the pot each time. She couldn't help it if luck was on her side. She was also aware that her poker strategy sessions had been of help, too.

Bella watched as the forty dollars she had started with seemed to grow exponentially. If she had made more than a couple hundred dollars in just an hour, how much could she make over the course of the week? The thought provided an exhilarating rush for her, something she wasn't used to. She was always so cautious and careful. There was something about winning each hand that drove her to play more. She wasn't sure if she could stop.

Bella was so engrossed in her game that she hardly noticed when Angela tapped her on the shoulder.

"Sorry it took so long," Angela said, "We had more fun shopping than we thought we would. So, are you ready to go?" Her friends immediately assumed that Bella was still playing poker just to occupy her time. They had no idea how enamored she had become with the game. But she couldn't let them know just how much fun she was having, Jessica especially.

"I guess…" Bella said as she slowly reached for her chips. She didn't want to move from her spot at all; the surrounding players were more than happy to watch her leave. She wasn't sure why exactly she was doing so well at poker, but she definitely didn't want to mess with her success. It could have been a number of factors: the table, the dealer, the time of day. She had an amazing streak of luck going, and now her friends were about to pull her away. How ironic that this had been exactly what she would have wanted an hour ago, before she had started playing.

"Let's go! I'm hungry," Jessica whined, not even bothering to ask how much Bella had won.

The girls sought out a place to eat and eventually settled on a sandwich café. A lot of the restaurants were so expensive, and no one was ready to spend _that _kind of money – at least, not yet.

Angela and Jessica discussed their mini shopping trip and how they couldn't wait to explore more stores. Bella wasn't really listening, nor was she eating much of her turkey sandwich. Instead, all she thought about was the rush she had felt at the poker table. Since she was normally so quiet (and because Jessica usually dominated the conversation), neither girls seemed to notice that Bella wasn't mentally involved.

She had to go back and play some more poker – it was all she thought about. But how would she sneak away from her friends? Maybe she could convince them to go shopping again; that always seemed to work for Jessica.

"So, any more shopping plans for tonight?" Bella tried her best to ask nonchalantly as they left the restaurant.

"Why do you care?" Jessica asked, shooting her a puzzled look. "Don't tell me you actually want to come."

"No, I don't," Bella reassured, "But, I don't want to feel like I'm keeping you from anything."

"Actually," Angela began, "we were considering checking out a few more stores, but we don't want to leave you by yourself. What would you do on your own?"

Angela was so sweet and caring, but Bella wasn't sure if Jessica felt that same. Jessica rarely let anything stand in the way of her shopping.

"Don't worry about me," Bella assured them. "I'm sure I'll figure out something."

Jessica had a clear look of confusion on her face. Bella was sure her friends must be onto her by now, but she didn't care. All she could think about was playing more poker and winning more money. She felt like she was about to explode from all the anticipation.

"It's settled, then," Jessica announced, showing no concern for Bella. "Me and Angela will continue our shopping adventure. We'll meet you back at the room tonight, I guess. Have fun!"

With the last statement, Jessica and Angela grabbed their purses and headed back in the direction of the shops. Bella waited for them to disappear around the corner before making her move.

When she was sure it was safe, Bella headed back to the poker tables. It was a little tough to find at first, but eventually, she was sure she had found the original table she'd started playing at before her friends had pulled her away. It was tough to be sure, though, since she didn't recognize the dealer. She also noticed the minimum bet at the table had increased from twenty dollars to fifty dollars. She knew from her research that this was to be expected; casinos would raise the table limit in the later hours, since more people were playing. She didn't mind – more money to play with meant more money to win.

As Bella sat down at the poker table, she took stock of all the players around her. She didn't recognize any of the faces from her last game, but it was hard to remember because she'd been so focused on her winnings.

It was then that she noticed a stunning young man sitting at the end of the table. He was pale, with disheveled bronze hair covering part of his face. He had the most beautiful topaz eyes. Her heart skipped a beat when their eyes met, but Bella tried not to let it affect her. She knew she had to concentrate as much as she could on the game and not allow herself to get distracted, no matter how gorgeous this person was.

Little did Bella know, this mysterious man was about to make her Vegas trip completely miserable and completely wonderful, all at the same time.

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**Author's Note: So, what did you think? I appreciate all reviews, good or bad :)**


	4. Chapter 4 :: Last Night

**Thank you to my betas who helped with this chapter.**

**And thank you to everyone who has left reviews. I love them all!**

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While lying in bed, Bella felt a tap on her shoulder, interrupting her pleasant dream. As she reluctantly opened her eyes, Angela's face came into view.

"Hey, Bella. Wake up," Angela said sweetly. "We're going to the pool. We heard it was pretty neat. Do you want to come? We know you got back kinda late."

Bella struggled to piece everything together from the previous night. This was like a hangover, but far worse. At least she knew she would eventually recover from a hangover. She glanced at the clock on her bedside table and noticed that it was exactly eight in the morning.

"Yeah! Where were you? And what time did you get in? We waited for you to come back, but we finally gave up around midnight." Jessica stood by the door, already changed into her swimsuit, with one hand on the door handle. It was as though she already knew Bella would decline their poolside offer.

If Bella remembered last night correctly – and honestly, she wished she didn't – she had finally stumbled in to the room at around five in the morning. She struggled with the details of last night as she tried to think of an appropriate response to her friend's invitation. Despite her head being a chaotic mess, of one thing she was absolutely positive: the last thing she wanted to do was swim.

"I'm good," Bella struggled to say between yawns. She didn't feel like addressing all the other questions right now. She hoped Jessica wouldn't notice and would instead be more focused on getting the day started.

"I figured as much," Jessica remarked, hoisting her pool bag over her shoulder. "C'mon, Angela, let's go."

Angela had a look of concern on her face as she rested her hand on Bella's.

"Are you sure?" she asked Bella. "Is everything all right? You look really worn out."

Angela had absolutely no idea what a loaded question she had just asked Bella. In a normal situation, Bella would have no problem confiding in Angela her various dilemmas – boy troubles, homework frustrations, parent disagreements – all those issues seemed so minor now. She knew that Angela wouldn't have an answer for this one, so she decided that she would work out a solution herself. Why worry Angela even more?

"Go enjoy yourselves at the pool," Bella said. "I just lost track of time and got in late. A few more hours of sleep and I'll be fine."

Bella knew for a fact that no amount of sleep would cure _this_ problem. Unless, of course, there was new technology that allowed excess sleep to be converted into money. She felt pathetic for even considering that, but that was how desperate she had become.

"Okay," Angela said hesitantly. "Get some sleep. Maybe we can meet up for lunch or something later."

Lunch would be great, if Bella could afford it. But, staying true to her earlier decision, she kept her thoughts to herself as Angela and Jessica disappeared from the room.

Now, she was completely alone in her misery. Her heart sank as she tried to figure out everything that had happened last night. Hopefully, along the way, she would also think of a plan out of this mess.

While she didn't quite have a plan, Bella certainly knew who to blame for last night's downward spiral: _him_. She should have known he was bad luck from the start, but for some reason, she'd been so drawn to him. Why'd he have to be so good-looking? He probably hadn't even noticed her. She'd been just another collection of winnings to him. The thought of him brought a mixture of ecstasy and anger to her all at once. She hated herself for still attaching any positive emotions to him.

Before he had come along, Bella had been doing so well at the poker table. She'd been experiencing a rush that she'd never felt when playing poker with just Mike and the guys. Maybe it was because casino poker involved so much more money. It was so much nicer to _win_ a lot of money than to lose a lot - that was for sure.

Bella had barely had any time to enjoy her winnings once the mysterious man with the topaz eyes had come to the table. He'd taken everything that she had won _and_ all the extra money she had brought along on the trip.

She hadn't meant for things to get so out of hand. She'd only planned on playing a few games of poker. But, when she had sat down and started winning so much, she hadn't known how to stop once she had started losing.

She should have called it a night when she had lost all the money she had won. That would have been disappointing, but at least she would've been okay. But, no – she just had to keep on going. When all her winnings were gone, she dipped into her vacation fund for the trip; it hadn't been long before that was depleted, too. Even that would've also been a good time to stop, but she couldn't. She knew there had to be a way to recover at least some of the money she had lost. She had been doing so well before he had come along. What had happened?

That was when she had started into her bank account, home of student loans and her emergency savings fund. At the time it had seemed like an emergency, but with the night behind her, Bella could now see that hadn't been the case. She should have used the emergency money to get her by on the rest of the trip; she should have sworn off all poker right then and there. Instead, she had gone back to the table and played even more. She hadn't wanted to admit defeat.

She had tried her best to escape this mysterious topaz-eyed man. She had moved to a couple other tables, but he'd followed her there, too. Had he had some sort of vendetta against her? Bella had almost considered calling security to have him escorted out, but what would she have said? He'd just been playing the game as he should.

The problem was that he was just so good. She hadn't been the only one at the table losing money left and right. Everyone else at the table had been losing pretty badly, too. He'd seemed to have some sort of gift; it was almost as though he'd known what everyone's cards had been and had played accordingly. But how could he have possibly known that? It seemed ridiculous.

Bella had never even said two words to him. She hadn't even learned his name. She had just assumed that they were around the same age and that he must've played a lot of poker, since he had seemed to know the game so well.

Maybe if he hadn't been so drop-dead gorgeous, Bella could have focused better on her strategy. Because she'd been so distracted by his good looks, she had made a lot of careless errors that she otherwise wouldn't have. She had raised when she should have folded and had taken big risks with poor hands. She had spent weeks studying poker methodology, but it had all seemed to have gone out the window.

She had even tried her hand at other casino games; she had figured that since she'd had beginner's luck with poker, she might have it elsewhere. But the only thing blackjack, craps, and roulette had done was driven her further into debt. Her mind had already been clouded with frustration over her major loss at the poker table; she had really been in no state to be playing other games. At least the mysterious man had stopped following her once she made her way away from the poker table. He probably would have felt even more satisfaction watching her lose even more of her money.

Now, she was sprawled across the bed, thinking about how much debt she was in. That money was supposed to have been for college. How was she going to pay for the rest of school? How was she going to get through the rest of this trip? And how was she going to do all this without Angela and Jessica finding out?

All of the sudden, the hotel phone rang by her bedside, jerking her out of her pity party. Bella was a bit confused, as she wasn't sure who would have the hotel room number.

"Hello?" Bella asked hesitantly.

"Bella? Is that you?!" a voice on the other line cried. "It's your mother. I tried calling your cell phone all night, but no one answered. I was so worried something had happened to you. I called the hotel, hoping they would put you through. Why haven't you called me since you got into Vegas? "

Now it was all becoming clear. Bella remembered the night before when her cell phone had been ringing constantly with her mother's number. Of course, this had all been happening while Bell had won – and then eventually lost – all her money. As the night had grown worse, the desire to talk to her mom had faded. Bella knew her mom would be furious if she found out the truth.

"I'm fine," Bella lied. "The girls and I were having a lot of fun last night, and I didn't get a chance to call you. I'm sorry."

"Well," Renée began as she started to calm down, "I'm glad to hear you're all right, but please make an effort to call me next time so I don't worry. You know how I get. Enough about me, though – how's Vegas going?"

Bella had been dreading this question the moment she'd picked up the phone. If she hadn't been able to tell her two best friends her tale of woe, there was no way she could tell her mother. But she knew, given the mood she was in, she wouldn't be able to completely lie her way through the phone call. She decided to downplay her trip the best she could. Technically, it wasn't a lie – it just wasn't the complete truth.

"It's not going as well as I'd hoped," Bella muttered reluctantly into the receiver.

"Really?" her mother replied, concerned. "I thought you would have bankrupted several casinos by now. You always do so well with those boys you play poker with."

Bella knew her mom was kidding, but she shuddered at the thought of her mom finding out the casinos had bankrupted _her_ instead.

"Vegas is harder than it looks." Bella was feeling incredibly uneasy as last night's events became even more apparent.

"So, what do you have planned for today?" Renée always loved to live vicariously through Bella's adventures. Bella had a feeling if she knew, she wouldn't want to be a part of this adventure.

"I don't know," Bella answered. "I think we're just going to see where the day takes us."

She got a kick out of the fact that she was talking about the girls as though they were still in the room, but no – it was just Bella and the giant, inescapable hole she had dug for herself.

"Sounds like a blast!" Renée exclaimed. "I'm sure you girls will have so much fun. Well, I don't want to keep you. I just wanted to make sure you were okay. Hope the hotel doesn't make you pay for this phone call."

Would it really matter, anyway? It would just be another charge to add to Bella's already overwhelming list.

"Bye, Mom," Bella said and then hung up.

Bella lay in bed for a few more moments, but she knew she couldn't spend the rest of the day like this. She had to get up and do something – but what? Everything cost money, and she didn't have any. Or did she?

Bella climbed out of bed and noticed she was still wearing last night's clothes. She had been so upset she hadn't even wanted to change into her sleeping attire. She dug deep into her pants pocket and was surprised when she pulled out a twenty-dollar bill. Her mind raced as she thought about all the activities she could do with this newfound cash.

As destructive as she knew it was, Bella still couldn't shake the desire to gamble. In the back of her mind, she was also hoping she would see the mysterious topaz-eyed man again, even though he was directly responsible for the huge mess she was in. She took a deep breath and made her way out of the hotel room towards the penny slots – the only gambling she could really afford.

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**Any guesses what might happen at the penny slots? Is gambling a bad idea for Bella after last night? Or will her luck finally turn around?**

**Please leave a review and let me know what you think.**

**And for those of you who think Edward deliberately tried to take Bella's money, just remember - there are two sides to every story. All will be revealed in later chapters :)**


	5. Chapter 5 :: A Little Help

**This chapter is a little shorter than the others, but quite a bit happens. Don't worry, the next one will be longer. I hope you enjoy!**

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Bella couldn't deny just how pathetic the entire situation was. However, she also couldn't stop dropping coins into the penny slots, the only casino game she could afford.

In just one night, she had managed to put herself thousands of dollars in debt by playing casino games. She did so, mostly in part, to a gorgeous mystery man who made her knees weak and her strategy terrible. She was a complete wreck and had no idea what she was going to do.

Now, here she was contributing even more money to the casino, the very same place that had taken her for all she was worth. On top of that, she was secretly hoping she would run into him again so that she could learn more about him. Ha! Like he even knew or cared who she was.

It was absolutely disgusting, and Bella cringed at the thought of what Angela and Jessica might think. She would have to tell them, eventually. There was absolutely no way she was going to get back even a quarter of the money that she had lost. It was hard for her to accept this, especially since – up to this point – she had been so cautious and careful.

She was sure Angela and Jessica would eventually call her to meet up for lunch, but so far, her phone remained inactive. She'd been able to tell by the look on Angela's face just how awful she had looked. They probably figured that she was still asleep; either that, or the girls had decided to take another shopping trip. Bella still preferred to be here, playing penny slots, than be tortured with frivolous purchases and constant badgering concerning outfits she couldn't care less about.

Bella tried, unsuccessfully, to distract herself with the slot game and not think about the events at hand. It was hard for her not to focus on all the money lost when even the penny slot machine was not cooperating. It was an endless cycle. She dropped the coin in the slot, pulled the handle, and watched disappointedly as the symbol reels stopped on nothing worthwhile. Lather, rinse, repeat. Even the cheapest casino game at the hotel wouldn't cut her a break.

Her coin bucket weighed less and less as the hours passed. She could hear the sounds of other people's coins dropping and lights flashing. Why was she so unlucky now, especially after she had been so successful when she first got here? Bella continued to pull the handle like a mindless robot, but she no longer concentrated on the game; she instead focused on her horrible trip to Vegas.

No one knew how much money she had lost. Her friends and family might know things weren't going well, but they didn't know the extent of it. What would they do when they found out? With all her student loan money gone, how was she going to pay for her next semester of college? Working one job wouldn't be enough – she would have to work two. And how would she balance this with her academics? Forget a social life.

What a stupid idea this had been. She was so incredibly mad at everyone, including herself. She was mad at Jessica for having planned this stupid trip. She was mad at Angela for having agreed and not supporting her original spring break idea of state parks (which would not have jeopardized her savings). She was mad at Mike for having suggested Vegas just because she'd had a couple good nights of poker. Clearly, after last night, she had proved she was anything _but_ good at poker.

It was all too much to take. All the anger built up inside her. She took her fist and went straight for the face of the slot machine. Except, keeping with her streak of luck in Vegas, she missed hitting the machine and fell forward off her chair. Her face scrunched up against the glass, and her bucket of coins went flying in the air, spilling everywhere.

"Pathetic," Bella muttered to herself. She hoped no one saw as she struggled to get up. Luckily, everyone around her seemed too focused on their games to care.

"Are you okay?" a male voice called behind her. Oh great – someone had seen after all. Could this have gotten any worse?

"I'm fine," she said, regaining her balance on the stool and looking around for her lost coins.

"Let me at least help you clean up this mess," he insisted as hurried to her side.

"I _said_ I'm fine." She turned toward him with an evil glare. It was then that their eyes made contact, and her face went blank. It was the mysterious man from the poker table – the same one who had happily taken all her money. The same one she had been silently praying to run into today. He was just as gorgeous as ever. Unfortunately, because she was filled with such rage, she didn't take the time to notice that something was actually going in her favor. Instead, she pointed her finger at his chest. "It's you."

"Do we know each other?" he asked slyly.

"Don't pretend like you don't know who I am!" Bella cried out, causing a few of the nearby slot players to take notice. "You took all my money and left me with nothing! I was doing perfectly fine until you came along! Now, I am having the worst time in Vegas and it's all because of you!"

"Calm down," he said in a quiet voice, trying not to cause a scene. "I'm sure things can't be that bad."

"Oh really?!" Bella's voice was even louder now, increasing her volume with each new question. "So, sitting here playing penny slots while your friends are enjoying the day out isn't that bad? Losing several thousand dollars of your college savings fund isn't that bad?! Lying to your family and friends about how much money you've lost isn't so bad?! Thank you very much for your sympathy, sir, but really – I do think it's that bad."

Bella couldn't believe herself. She had been too afraid to tell her closest friends about the latest status of her bank account, but here she was, screaming her troubles to a stranger at the top of her lungs – a stranger who was at the root of her problems, no less.

She expected him to run away in fear. Clearly, he had no idea what he was getting into. But to her surprise, he just stared into her eyes and smiled.

"Do you want to sit and talk?" he asked politely. "You sound like you could use a friend."

He was so incredibly composed and sincere. Eventually, Bella had no choice but to slowly calm herself down as well.

"I guess," she replied, no longer feeling the blood boiling inside her. Now that she had a chance to calm down, she noticed his eyes were now a darker brown. She could have sworn they had been topaz the last time they met. Bella had been so caught up in the excitement of poker; she was sure it was probably just a detail she had misinterpreted.

"Good," he said. "There's a buffet right around the corner. We can grab lunch, my treat. Especially since ... well ... you know."

Since Bella had zero dollars to her name? Oh, she was well aware. His idea for lunch sounded intriguing, but she remembered that she had promised her friends she would meet up with them for lunch, instead. It was more of a vague promise, though, and hadn't Bella wanted to run into this guy since last night? Now was the perfect opportunity. Her friends would understand, right?

"That would be good." Bella didn't really know how to react to all his sudden hospitality.

"Great," he said. "By the way, I don't believe I caught your name."

"I'm Bella." She looked down, trying to avoid his intense gaze.

"Nice to meet you, Bella. I'm Edward."

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**So Bella did meet her mystery man at the slots, as some of you correctly predicted! Is Bella's luck finally turning around? What do you think so far and what do you think might happen? Let me know. Reviews rock!**

**Thank you to everyone who has supported me and left reviews so far.**

**I also wanted to give a special shoutout to Twilight authors lisa89 (one of my awesome betas!) and VvDeadRosesvV who specifically pimped me out in their chapters. Go check them both out, if you haven't already.**


	6. Chapter 6 :: Out to Lunch

**Woohoo! I passed my goal of 50 reviews! And thank you to everyone who continues to read. I really appreciate your comments.**

**A big thank you - as always - to my awesome betas who help out a lot and deal with my incessant questions. And now, my chapters return to their normal length..**

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"Two buffet tickets, please," Edward said, handing his room key to the cashier. "And charge it to the penthouse suite."

She was intrigued to learn he, too, was staying at the Bellagio hotel, not just gambling there. He must have played a lot of poker to be able to afford the most luxurious room available. Was he alone, or were there other people with him?

"Thank you for lunch," she said as she grabbed a tray and started toward the buffet line.

"You're welcome," he replied, walking right past the stack of trays and plates without stopping.

"Aren't you going to eat anything?" she asked, surprised. "You _did_ pay for a buffet ticket."

"I'm not hungry," he replied. "I only bought a second ticket because they wouldn't let me in otherwise." She wasn't sure why he wasn't hungry; he may have already eaten, but she wasn't completely sure. No need to push the issue - he _had_ paid for her meal, after all.

He followed close behind, empty-handed. She was a bit concerned at how close he was following and watching her. She tried not to make it obvious that she was noticing this behavior, and instead she focused on what food she would take from the endless array of offerings.

She was hungry, but all her thoughts kept going back to him. She couldn't believe he was here, treating her to lunch, within a few inches of her. She had to constantly remind herself why she hated him - he had taken all her money. But it was so hard for Bella to stay focused. His eyes were so inviting.

Because she was so distracted, she glided through the buffet line without putting a single item on her plate.

"Aren't _you_ going to get something to eat?" he asked, making reference to her earlier question about his eating habits. "Everything is already paid for. You can have one of everything if you'd like."

"I'm just trying to find something appetizing," she lied. Without thinking, she grabbed a couple of slices of pizza and a fresh red apple, putting them onto her plate. "Let's go find a table."

He gave her a puzzled look as his eyes darted toward the meager contents of her plate, but she tried not to notice. She was tired of standing in line, and she searched the crowded seating area in an attempt to find an empty table. Anything would have been fine; she just wanted to sit down as soon as possible so that she could start prying information out of him. Right now, all she knew was that his name was Edward, he was staying at the same hotel she was, and he was really good at poker.

She eventually spotted a small table in the corner and led him to it, tray in hand.

"So, what's troubling you?" he asked as they sat down. She was mad at herself for not getting the chance to ask the first question. Perhaps, if she was clever, she could turn this conversation around and he wouldn't notice.

"We don't have to talk about me," she said. "How about you? How long have you been playing poker? You're really good!"

"We can talk about me later. I want to hear about you." He didn't appear amused. Damn. This was going to be a tough nut for her to crack.

"What about me?" she asked reluctantly. If he was going to force the conversation to be about her, she wouldn't make it easy.

"Well, clearly things are so bad that you felt it was appropriate to yell at me in front of several casino patrons."

She blushed, recalling the incident that had happened moments earlier. It wasn't her fault he had shown up at exactly the wrong time. She had been filled with such rage, and it certainly didn't help that he had been at the root of it all.

"I'm sorry," she said, her eyes darting toward the floor.

"I don't want an apology," he replied. "I want an explanation. How did this all start?"

She wasn't sure where exactly to start the story, but as she looked into his eyes again, she couldn't help but want to tell him everything.

"Mike," she began, knowing that Edward had absolutely no idea who Mike was. "Mike and his friends, Eric and Tyler, play poker with me a lot."

She was hoping that would be a good enough prompt for Edward to speak again, but he just sat there and smiled, expecting her to continue. After a few moments of silence, she resumed talking.

"We all go to school together at the University of Washington. I win a lot, and Mike thought it would be a good idea for me to go to Vegas."

"Does Mike have feelings for you?" Edward asked without missing a beat.

"I - I guess," she stammered, not sure how to respond. "But I don't have feelings for him in that way. He's a nice guy, but he's not my type."

She wanted to be sure it was very clear to him that she was single and not interested in other men, just in case he wanted to take her up on the offer. It was a silly thought, but it could happen. He had bought her lunch, hadn't he? Wasn't that the first step in the progression of dating? Of course, she tried not to get ahead of herself.

"Okay, continue," he said, leaning back into his chair. Why did he care so much about this Mike guy he had never met, anyway?

"Angela and Jessica, my two best friends, were planning a trip to Vegas for our spring break."

"Were you involved in this planning?" He sure was asking all sorts of interesting questions today.

"Not exactly," she muttered. "I wanted to go on a road trip and visit all the Washington state parks, but they weren't interested."

"That's such a shame," he said. "The wildlife is gorgeous this time of year. I'm a fan of the deer and mountain lions."

"Do you camp?" she asked, seeing an opportunity to turn the conversation around. Surely he would be anxious to talk about himself for a change.

"Not quite," he said with a smile.

"Oh," she said, unsure how to proceed. Should she press for more information? Should she find a way to segue into the topic of his poker skills? They sat in silence for a moment while she contemplated her next move. Before she could think of another question, he broke the silence with one of his own.

"So you came to Vegas hoping to strike it rich?" His questions sounded a lot less confident than before.

"No. I was only going to play a couple games of poker while my friends were shopping. Then, before I knew it, I started winning. And then, my luck turned, and everything went downhill from there."

"What changed?" he asked. She wanted so badly to tell him that _he_ was the reason for her loss. This was the perfect opportunity. But as she gazed into his mysterious eyes, she didn't have the heart to make him feel guilty. She just wanted to spend all her time with him, and she didn't want to do anything that would have jeopardized that.

"I don't know," she lied, "but it's all gone - my trip money, my savings, my student loans. I have absolutely nothing to my name. The worst part is that my friends and family have no idea. It hurts to have to hide all this from everyone."

As she said this, she could feel her insides tearing up again, and she struggled as hard as she could to fight the tears. She desperately tried to find a way to take the focus off of herself and her petty problems.

"So, you like parks?" she asked. It was the best she could quickly come up with while avoiding another unnecessary long pause.

Edward opened his mouth to speak, but before he could answer, he was interrupted by the sound of the Mozart ringtone on Bella's cell phone singing from inside her pocket.

"Ah - Eine Kleine Nachtmusik is a classic," Edward remarked.

"Yeah," she said hesitantly, unsure of what to do next. She knew without looking at the phone that it was Jessica, calling to meet up for lunch. Should she pick up the phone and ruin her potential bonding moment with Edward? Or should just she ignore it and let them worry?

"You can answer it," Edward said with a chuckle as the symphony continued to play. "Don't worry - I won't leave."

With that, she took her phone out of her pocket and flipped it open to take Jessica's call.

"Hey, Jess," Bella said.

"Hey, Bella," she replied from the other end. "You certainly sound better than you did this morning."

"Yeah, I am feeling better," Bella said with a smile as she sneaked a glance at Edward. He was so incredibly handsome; it was going to be very difficult to maintain her composure throughout the phone call.

"So, what's up for lunch?" Jessica asked.

"Well..." Bella trailed off as her eyes moved to the half-eaten plate of food in front of her.

"Don't tell me you already ate." Jessica's voice was sounding less pleasant by the minute.

"I'm sorry," Bella admitted as she scrambled to think of a legitimate excuse. "It's just that I didn't hear from you guys, so I thought you'd just decided to eat lunch without me."

She didn't feel comfortable lying to her friends, but the truth in this situation would not be easy to tell. Jessica was already getting frustrated with the plans falling apart - why complicate things even further?

"We did clearly agree to meet up for lunch, didn't we?" Even though Bella couldn't see Jessica, she could hear the anger in her voice. From past experience, Bella knew from past experience that the best thing to do was to admit fault and try not to anger Jessica any more than necessary.

"You're right," Bella admitted. "I guess I just got impatient when I should have just waited or called you first. I'm sorry."

She looked up at Edward again; he clearly looked concerned. Even though he was only hearing one side of the conversation, he could probably put the pieces together.

"Well," Jessica continued, "since you already ate, I guess me and Angela will just do our own thing. We're going to meet up sometime after that, _right_?"

"Sure," Bella said, not sure how accountable she could really be. Right now, all she wanted to do was stay with Edward and learn all she could about him.

"Okay," Jessica said as the calm returned to her voice. "We'll give you a call when we're done. Talk to you later."

"Bye." Bella shut the phone and put it in her pocket. Her eyes darted to Edward once more. "Sorry about that. So, where were we? You were starting to tell me about yourself."

"I'm sorry," he began, clearly not interested in sharing the details of his personal life, "but I feel terrible about your situation. It's not fair that you have to lie to your friends. I want to help."

"That's nice," she said sarcastically. She slumped in her chair as she came to the realization that the conversation would still be focused on her, no matter how hard she tried. "Do you have a wad of cash you can hand over to solve all my problems?"

"Not exactly," he said with a chuckle.

"Well then," she asked, "how _exactly_ do you plan to help?"

"Let's just say that I know the game of poker very well."

"Hey," she interjected, offended, "I know the game of poker, too. I studied before I came here, remember?"

"No," he corrected her, "you understand the rules. You play games on the weekend with Mike and the guys. They let you win because you're beautiful and they want to get in your pants."

She couldn't help herself as she blushed at his comment. "Maybe."

"How much have you lost since you stepped off the plane in Vegas, up until this very moment?"

"A lot more than I ever won playing with the guys, that's for sure." She laughed nervously.

"I need an exact number." His voice sounded urgent.

She wasn't sure why he cared, but she knew precisely what the amount was - although she wished she didn't. In fact, he had been there for the majority of her losses. She had watched every day in Vegas as her bank account balance got smaller and smaller. She took a big gulp and closed her eyes.

"Five thousand, four hundred and eighty-three dollars...and twenty-two cents." She blurted out the number with such a lack of confidence. When she opened her eyes, she expected his face to have a complete look of shock at the official number. Instead - like always - he just smiled warmly. Was there no amount of money that would faze him?

"So, what's the plan?" she asked, not sure if she wanted to hear the answer.

"We're going to play poker and get your money back."

Her face fell. "Great idea, James Bond. There's just one small problem - I have no money to play with, remember?"

"That's not a problem," he said confidently. He reached in his front pocket and plucked five one-hundred-dollar bills from his seemingly endless roll of money. She couldn't stop her jaw from dropping. She was floored by his generosity. She also wondered how much money he had if he could drop that much without blinking. After all, he had succeeded in cleaning out Bella's earnings. How much poker had he played? Enough to afford the penthouse suite, that was for sure. Bella pushed the questions out of her mind as she reached out hesitantly and took the bills.

"Thanks."

"That should be enough to play with." He leaned in closer. "You need to follow my exact instructions with what I'm about to tell you. And you must promise me you'll stop when I say so. It's not going to be all the money you've lost, but it will be some. The casinos get suspicious if you win too much in a short period of time."

"That's fair," she said, still a little overwhelmed by the sudden appearance of the large amount of money.

"You _need_ to promise me. Winning can be addictive. People don't know when to stop, especially when they've lost so much." He stared deeply into her eyes, and she was mesmerized. How could she not give him everything he wanted?

"I promise," she said with a sighed, not exactly sure what she was getting herself into.

He folded his hands together and a smug smile formed across his face. "Okay, so here's the plan..."

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**Sorry to leave you all on a cliffhanger, but I couldn't resist. Brace yourself for some serious Pokerward in the next chapter.**

**And for those of you wondering, Eine Kleine Nachtmusik is quite a popular piece, although I wasn't aware of the title until I researched it. If you youtube-it, I guarantee you'll recognize it.**

**As always, reviews rock, and I do respond to them all! Come visit on the Twighted thread, too: **http://www[DOT]twilighted[DOT]net/forum/viewtopic[DOT]php?f=33&t=6993 **(or check my profile for a link)**


	7. Chapter 7 :: A Man and a Plan

**I'm loving the reviews. Thank you to all my faithful readers, especially the ones who are not afraid to ask questions. I love answering them.**

**Thank you to all my betas, too!**

**Thought I would try something different for this chapter and go back and forth in time to help explain the infamous plan. Hope you enjoy.**

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For the fifth time that day, Bella listened to the Mozart ringtone belt out its harsh melody and deliver the news that Jessica was calling. And, just like the four times before, Bella just simply chose to ignore it. She was sick of lying, and avoiding confrontation seemed to be the easier way to handle the situation.

Yes, she had backed out on their original plan to meet up for lunch. She was sure, though, that Jessica would have understood, had she caught a glimpse of Edward's gorgeous face. And yes, she also had also promised she would meet up with the girls _after_ lunch. But, to be fair, Jessica hadn't specified a time. "After lunch" had been a rather ambiguous statement.

Truth be told, Bella was out of excuses. She didn't want to answer Jessica's calls because she hated lying to her friends any more than she had to. They didn't know about the horrible debt that Bella was in, nor was she in the mood to go into the specifics. Her main focus right now was to get as much money back as she could before everyone else found out the truth. From several feet away, she spotted her only hope out of debt and back into the black - Edward.

Bella thought back to a few hours earlier at lunch, where they had reviewed exactly how their money-making plan would work. She mentally replayed the conversation as she planned her next moves.

_"The most important thing to remember is that we need to be as inconspicuous as possible," Edward said. "The casinos have the tables rigged with all sorts of intricate security measures to catch cheaters. This is why you have to act normally. If you don't give them a reason to get suspicious, they'll ignore you and focus their energies on the real culprits."_

She couldn't help but chuckle at the stress he had placed on the word "inconspicuous;" if he knew her better, he would have known that her extensive clumsiness would ruin any attempts at being discreet.

_"First," Edward continued, "I want you to set up for a while at a slot machine of your choice. The type or denomination doesn't matter. What is important, however, is that you have a decent view of the poker tables."_

It didn't take long to find a slot machine that fit the bill. The casinos had cleverly laid out the machines so that each had optimal view of all the other games one could be playing instead. Bella put a few dollars into the machine and took her time between each slot pull. She tried to be slow enough that she didn't lose all her money at once, but kept it believable to any onlookers that she was actually playing. The real action, of course, would be happening elsewhere.

_"Next," Edward explained, "I'm going to scope out the best poker table and sit down. I'll be looking for a table with large bets but at least a couple of open seats."_

In between pulls, Bella casually turned her head to see that Edward had found himself an optimal table that met all his previously stated criteria.

_"This is where you need to be patient," Edward told her. "We can't arrive at the table together - that will arouse suspicion. We have to make this look as coincidental as possible. I'm going to play a few hands and bet without any real strategy. My goal is to appear just like any other normal poker player." _

Since she was a bit of a distance away, it was hard to see the exact plays Edward was making. She was starting to become familiar with the chip colors, and it did look like he was putting a lot of money on each hand. Sometimes it appeared that he won, and sometimes it looked like he lost. It was a stark contrast from the previous night, when he had seemed to be winning every single hand.

_"When you're at the machine for a half hour or so, I want you to start making your way over to the table I'm sitting at. Try and make it seem as though your table selection was random."_

Bella glanced at the clock on her cell phone - 5:32 PM. She had started to play the slot machines a little before five in the afternoon. Now was as good a time as any to put the wheels in motion. She cashed out what money was left in the slot machine, and it spit out a paper ticket with some arbitrary amount she would later have to take to the cashier. She wasn't really sure if she had won or lost during her session. It didn't matter, anyway - there were much bigger fish to fry.

She got up and made her way to the poker-table area. This was a different area from where she had played the previous night, and she didn't recognize a single face. There were so many different types of poker games to choose from - Pai Gow Poker, Three-Card Poker, Caribbean Stud. She didn't have to try too hard to make her table choice look random; all the choices of poker games were very overwhelming.

Her eyes darted around the room and focused again on the table where Edward was playing. She took a deep breath and tried her best to wander over to the table casually, like it was just another ordinary night at the casino. Now, it was time for the _real_ games to begin.

_ "When you join me at the table," Edward explained, "it's important that we do not sit next together. First, it might tip off to someone that we know each other. But more importantly, you need to be able to see me."_

Bella approached the poker table and found the perfect seat that met all Edward's requests. First, the chair was not next to him, as there were three people in between. She also had a clear view of him - his entrancing eyes, his gorgeous face, his perfect hands - everything but his cards.

As she placed $500 on the table, the dealer handed her the equivalent in chips along with her two cards to start the game. As Bella examined the cards, she felt mostly underwhelmed - a jack of hearts and a three of spades. Not great, not terrible. Certainly playable, though. When it came time to bet, she threw her twenty-dollar ante into the pot.

She glanced over at Edward, wondering what two cards he held. His face was completely unreadable and she was sure he kept it that way purposely. She silently hoped that she would be able to play the game correctly and not be too distracted by him, like she had fell victim to in the past. She knew he was counting on her.

As the bets cycled around the table, each of the five members, including Edward and Bella, put something into the pot - oddly enough, no one had yet to fold. Bella hoped this trend would continue; if she played well, there would be quite a big pot for her at the end.

The dealer flopped the first three cards: a four of hearts, a six of diamonds, and a queen of clubs. This three-card combination didn't give Bella too many new options. Still, her hand wasn't terrible, and she decided to press on. She threw her bet in along with everyone else at the table. So far, so good.

The dealer threw down the fourth card on the community pile: a king of clubs. It looked so nice next to the queen of the same suit, but unfortunately it didn't help Bella at all. With four cards on the table, she had nothing in her hand and was getting rather frustrated. She tried her best not to show it, and instead she tried to calm herself with thoughts of Edward and his master poker plan.

_"Why is it so important that I need to see you?" Bella asked. She secretly knew she didn't need any convincing, but it certainly sounded like Edward had an idea._

_"Watch me for cues on what to do. If I lick my lips, it means they're bluffing and I want you to stay in. If I run my fingers through my hair, their hand is good and I want you to fold." _

_As he explained each gesture, he made the appropriate movement ever so subtly. If she hadn't been paying close attention, she wouldn't have noticed. _

Lips, stay. Hair, fold. Easy enough, right?

As Bella contemplated how to proceed, her eyes darted to Edward. His face looked just as determined and focused as ever, without giving any sort of hint as to what his cards were. Did he even know she needed his guidance at this moment? Just as she was about to pull her eyes back to her cards, she noticed him move his tongue gently across his lips. Damn, that was sexy. Bella tried her best to control herself as she scrambled to remember what licking lips meant in the context of their poker plan.

After she cleared images from her mind of her mouth on Edward's, she suddenly remembered her strategy - Edward wanted her to stay. But how could he expect her to stay with cards like these?

She wasn't one to argue with Edward; he clearly had shown that he knew far more about poker than she did. She threw in her bet and the game pressed on. So far, only one player had folded. That left three other players, besides Bella, still in the game.

The dealer turned over the last and final card: a king of diamonds. Bella's heart sank. With the two cards in her hand, she had absolutely nothing good. The best hand she could make was a pair of two kings - the same hand everyone else at the table could make. If someone had a card that matched one of the numbers on the table, they could make two pairs easily. If they had a third king, it would be three of a kind. Someone could potentially have a full house.

All the card possibilities made her stomach bundle up in knots as she realized her hand was terrible. In any normal situation, she would have folded by now. Another player shared her sentiment; as the bets cycled around the table, he tossed his cards to the dealer, indicating he was done for the round. This only made Bella even more doubtful about her hand.

Her eyes darted toward Edward again, and she saw another subtle lip-licking gesture. She only caught a slight glimpse of his tongue, but couldn't help imagining the warmth of it on hers. This gesture was obviously a terrible idea and was making it impossible for Bella to stay focused. She cleared her mind again and looked back at her cards.

She knew Edward wanted her to stay in the game and continue to bet. Why was he so insistent upon her staying, though, when there was only a small chance she could win? He mentioned that if he licked his lips, it meant the players were bluffing, but how could he have possibly known that? She remembered asking the same exact question a few hours ago.

_"How will you know what cards the other players have?"_

_"I've been playing this game for a while," Edward said with a smile, "and I've learned how to read poker faces very well."_

Only one player, a tall, older grey-haired gentleman, remained in the game with Bella and Edward. He looked very determined and continued to bet along with her. Now, more than ever, Bella was determined to know what cards Edward held.

_"Pay no attention to what I'm doing at the table," Edward explained. "My strategy will be a little different than yours. Just focus only on your cards and the signals I give you."_

As the betting made its way to Edward, he decided to fold. Bella tried her best not to show any noticeable shock. She was sure he must have had something good - maybe his cards had been amazing, but he just wanted to be nice. She chuckled a bit at the thought of some random stranger giving her sympathy. Then again, he _had_ concocted this elaborate scheme to help her win her money back.

Bella pushed those thoughts from her mind and focused on the issue of the game in progress. With Edward out, it left only her and the older man. Once the betting ended, it was time for the both of them to turn over their cards. She knew this would turn out badly. As she glanced around the table, she saw everyone - including Edward - waiting with a look of anticipation.

"Two kings," she muttered. "Just like everyone else." She put her cards face up on the table for everyone to see. It was hard to tell, but it looked to her like Edward was a little taken aback. Perhaps he expected her to have something better? Was he now regretting his decision to tell her to stay in the game?

She took a deep breath as the older man turned over his two cards. Everything seemed to go in slow motion, and Bella seriously considered not even looking at his cards. Why did she have to be such a wimp at this part of the game?

Bella couldn't help her mouth from dropping open when she saw what the older man had - a five and seven of clubs. She had won this round, after all.

"Nice job," he said. "I was hoping for a straight or flush, but it wasn't in the cards." Everyone at the table smirked at his pun. "Unfortunately, I couldn't bluff my way out of this one. You must have seen it all over my face."

Bella, of course, could never tell him the _real_ reason she stayed in the game for so long. Somehow, Edward had known what the man had had, but she tried not to focus on exactly how that had been possible. As the dealer pushed the winning pot of chips toward her, she took her mind off Edward for a moment to relish in her winnings. She secretly wanted to count each individual chip, but she worried what the other players might think and she didn't want to appear conceited.

Instead, she just glanced over the chips to get a rough number. She smiled to herself as she realized there were at least a couple hundred dollars of winnings in the pile.

When a new game started, Bella threw in her bet confidently and braced herself for a wild night. Maybe her luck was starting to finally turn around. And maybe, if things were going really well, she would get another opportunity to see Edward lick his sexy lips again and drive her wild.

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**So there's "the plan." It's a pretty good plan, besides the fact that Edward's lip licking is a bit distracting to Bella.**

**What did you think? What do you think (or hope) will happen next? I love reviews!**


	8. Chapter 8 :: Close

**Thank you as always to my awesome betas. And thank you for all the reviews!!**

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Bella couldn't believe it. As the games continued to play out on the poker table, things finally started to turn around. She continued to play just as Edward had taught her, although all that lip-licking was really starting to drive her wild. She raised and folded when she was "told," and somehow, it was always the right choice in the end.

How did he seem to always know what other cards the players had? It was as though he had x-ray vision. Maybe kryptonite was also his weakness. The only logical explanation Bella could give was the years of poker experience he supposedly had - but he didn't look that old. How old was he, exactly? Bella decided not to ask and instead focused at the task at hand: getting back everything she'd lost.

For the first time in Vegas, Bella watched as the chips came _to_ her at the end of each game, instead of _away_ from her and to another player. The players of all shapes and sizes that had stolen her money before now seemed to cower at her feet. None of their strategies seemed to be working. It was as though she was in a position of power and knew exactly what to do.

With as much money as Bella was winning, she was amazed at how much money Edward seemed to be losing. He told her to pay no attention to how he was playing, and for good reason. She wasn't keeping track, but she was sure he was losing almost - if not more - money than she had during her week-long stay in Vegas. The dealer, who recognized Edward from a previous night, asked about the sudden change of luck. Edward played it cool, of course, trying not to draw suspicion.

Bella, on the other hand, struggled to keep her composure and resisted the urge to jump out of her seat. Her winnings and promising future were all coming back in a rush. Each hand was another class at college or another rent payment. The thrill of winning was addictive, and Bella wasn't sure she knew how to stop. She knew she'd promised Edward she would quit when he said so, but if she was winning this much money now, she only imagined how much more she could win.

Suddenly, Edward picked up his chips and left the table, leaving Bella confused. As she glanced down at her chip pile, she noticed it was only about half the amount that she had initially told him she had lost. Edward was obviously expecting her to leave, but she didn't want to quit just yet. He _had_ said he wouldn't be able to get all her money back at once, but it was so hard to walk away. Why did she have to quit now? Why couldn't they stay just a little bit longer, so she could bring herself that much closer to being debt-free?

Bella was about to bet another hand when she felt Edward come up behind her at the table. She was surprised, as she knew how much Edward had stressed trying to keep the illusion that they were not together.

"Let's go," he whispered forcefully. She wasn't sure if the other people at the table could hear.

"But -" she began, still not ready to come down from the high.

"You promised," Edward said with a stern voice, and she knew he was right. It took every ounce of strength for Bella to walk away with her winnings, but she did.

Away from the table, she had a chance to put everything into perspective. She was glad that she at least had _some_ money back - much more than she'd had before when she'd sat down to lunch with Edward. She was still very much in debt, though, and couldn't quite shake the feeling of guilt that came from that.

When Edward offered to walk Bella back to her hotel for the night, she was initially surprised, thinking that only just a couple of hours had passed. The casinos made it a point for the players to not to know what time it _really_ was. When she glanced at the clock at her cell phone, she was surprised to discover it was almost two in the morning. Upon realizing the time, she also couldn't help but feel guilty for abandoning her friends. She didn't want the night to end, but she knew retiring to her room was probably long overdue.

She knew she had to make each of the last few moments that she had with Edward count. Who knew if she would ever see him again? As they made their way to Bella's hotel room, she waited outside to enjoy her little bit of happiness before she would have to face the judgment of Jessica and Angela, waiting inside. If luck was still on Bella's side like it had been tonight, both of her friends would be sound asleep, and she could avoid any unnecessary interrogation.

"So, what did we learn tonight?" Edward asked, stopping just a few short feet of the hotel door.

"I learned that I'm not cut out for the high-roller Vegas lifestyle," Bella replied with a laugh. "I'm better suited for the cheap fifty-cent games of Texas Hold 'Em with the guys."

"Good," Edward replied. "I'm glad you were able to get some of your money back. You seem relieved now that the weight is off your shoulders."

"I am, somewhat," she said with a long sigh.

"You wish we could have stayed and won all your money, don't you?"

Bella knew the disappointment was written all over her face. "I would be lying if I said I'm completely happy with my winnings. I'm still in debt, and that's so hard for me to swallow. You have to understand that I've always been the responsible, penny-pinching girl. It still hurts knowing that I had a single moment of weakness, but now I'll have to pay for it for quite awhile."

Edward reached out to put a hand on her shoulder. Even though there was a layer of fabric between them, when his fingers made contact, Bella felt a slight chill move down her arm and all over her body. It was the first time he'd touched her, and not surprisingly, it made her completely weak in the knees. He stared deeply into her eyes, and she was completely frozen as they stood, only inches apart. She couldn't speak.

"Bella," he said, his grip tightening slightly. "We _will_ find a way to get the rest of your money back."

"H- how?" she stammered. It felt like she had used every muscle in her body just to form one simple syllable. She was surprised that anything had managed to come out of her mouth at all.

"I don't know," he admitted, "but we'll figure it out. I promise. We had to stop when we did. I know it hurt, but I'm glad you were able to walk away in the end. I didn't want to have to worry about you getting caught."

"Okay," she said quickly, still fighting as hard as she could just to form simple words. Talking had never been this difficult before.

They stared at one another with their eyes locked, and she was so afraid to look away. Even though he was looking directly at her, he also appeared to be lost in thought - as if he was mentally struggling with a secret of some sort. The silence was deafening to her, though, and she knew she would have to think of something quickly, before the moment was lost.

With every ounce of strength she had left in her, Bella fought as hard as she could to form a complete question. "Do you think we could see each other outside of this casino sometime?"

Edward suddenly broke eye contact, looking down, and she worried that she had asked the wrong thing. He let out a sigh, but then resumed eye contact with her once more. "I know what you're doing, Bella, and you don't want to get involved with a guy like me."

She could feel the tears pooling in her eyes at that statement, but was unsure of how to react. "I don't understand."

Edward again appeared to be lost in thought, making mental calculations to determine his next move. "I'm not the guy you think I am."

"Do you not like me?" she asked pointedly. "Just tell me. I can take the rejection."

"No!" he cried, almost a little too loudly, before returning his voice to a low, seductive volume. "That's the problem - I like you _too_ much. From the moment I saw you, I was just so drawn in by you. You're more entrancing than you might realize."

Bella couldn't help but blush at his comment. She felt herself relaxing a little bit, knowing that he felt the chemistry between them, too.

"But we can't be together, Bella," Edward continued. "I know it doesn't make any sense, but if you knew the truth, you would know it was for the best. If you only knew what kind of person I really was..."

As he trailed off and looked down once more, he let his chilled hand drop from her shoulder; she hated the immediate warmth that rushed through her arm. She was unsure of what to do next - all she wanted was to be close to him. It had only been just a few seconds, but her body felt empty from the immediate lack of his touch. Without thinking, she grabbed his hand, their fingers intertwining, and a sudden rush of calm came over her as the coolness surged through her once again. For another moment, she felt complete.

"Everyone deserves happiness," she whispered softly, her eyes searching for his.

Now Edward was the one struggling with his words. "Bella ... I ... you don't ..."

Their eyes met once more, and shock waves overtook every limb and bone in her body, almost paralyzing her. Their faces were mere inches apart, but the distance was still much too far. She felt an irresistible magnetic pull between the two of them, drawing their bodies together. She didn't want to fight it anymore, and it seemed as though he didn't either. He moved closer to her, too, his eyes no longer wavering in self-doubt. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the inevitable impact of their lips that she'd been longing for since their tantalizing poker game earlier.

Suddenly, without warning, a loud voice behind her broke their trance.

"BELLA!"

Damn.

Bella caught a quick glance of Edward's face - a mixture of relief and disappointment - as she spun around to find Jessica and Angela standing in front of her, their hands filled with shopping bags and assorted souvenirs. They were not inside the hotel room, like Bella had hoped.

"There you are," Jessica snarled, a clear look of anger upon her face. "What happened to meeting up after lunch?"

"Thank goodness you're okay," Angela said with concern. "We were worried when we didn't hear from you.

Bella dropped her eyes and released her grasp from Edward, feeling an overwhelming sense of embarrassment as her body temperature returned to normal. She knew the moment that she'd shared with Edward was over, and she would now have to face the consequences of her actions. But as she opened her mouth to speak, she once again discovered that she was having trouble with her words.

"I..."

"Let me explain," Edward said as he moved closer to Angela and Jessica. "By the way, my name is Edward."

Bella watched as her friends' expressions of worry and anger turned to calm and excitement. It seemed as though Edward had the same effect on them as he did on her. She couldn't help but feel a pang of jealousy as his attention was no longer focused solely on her.

"Hi, Edward," Jessica said with an innocent smile upon her face. This was definitely the happiest that Bella had seen her since they had arrived in Vegas.

"You see," Edward began, extending his arm, "while I was walking through the casino, I saw Bella trip and fall." Both Angela and Jessica giggled, knowing full well the extent of Bella's clumsiness. "I wanted to make sure she was all right, so I stayed with her all day today, helping her around where I could. I apologize for keeping Bella from you both. I was just worried that if I let her out of my sight, something bad would happen. Please don't be angry at Bella. It's my fault for being so overprotective."

Upon hearing his story, Jessica and Angela looked at each other, letting out small squeals.

"That's so sweet," Jessica said, turning back to Edward.

"Bella is so lucky to have found a guy like you," Angela said.

"And now that I know she's in good hands," Edward remarked, "I will be leaving, as I'm sure my family is worried about me, too. It was a pleasure meeting you, ladies."

"Bye, Edward," the girls said in unison.

As Edward started down the hallway toward the elevator, Bella reached out and grabbed his arm. She wanted any excuse to feel his cool skin upon hers once more before he left.

"Wait," she whispered to him, hoping her friends wouldn't hear. "When can I see you again? I don't even know how to get in contact with you. I don't want to just leave it at this."

Edward chuckled and gave her a sly smile. "Don't worry. I have a feeling we'll be seeing each other again very soon. For now, though, you should spend time with your friends. They're the reason you're here, after all."

Bella wasn't exactly happy with his response. Yes, she had been neglecting her friends, but none of that seemed to matter now. She just wanted to be with Edward, even though it seemed that he had other plans. She could only hope he was right and they would see each other again soon. Maybe he knew something she didn't.

"Thank you for everything," Bella choked, trying to fight tears of happiness and sadness at the week's events. "I hope I'll see you soon." She reluctantly released her grip on his arm, letting the warmth overtake her body once more.

When Edward was completely out of her sight, she turned around to see Jessica and Angela standing there, completely giddy. They had huge smiles on their faces, and their eyes were incredibly wide.

"Ohmygosh, Bella," Jessica squeaked. "Edward is so hot! I understand why you didn't call me back now. I _totally_ would have done the same thing. So what happened? You have to tell us everything."

Bella stared back at them for a moment as she examined their excited faces. She would have loved to tell them every single wonderful detail of the night's events, but she knew it would be impossible to tell them the good without telling them the bad. She was sure that once Jessica and Angela learned the truth about her gambling, the smiles would fade and their anger would take over. She also couldn't help but harbor resentment at the two of them for their impeccable timing at ruining what could have been the greatest kiss of her life.

Bella sighed as she made her way inside the hotel room. "Maybe tomorrow, guys. It's been a really rough day, and I just want to go to sleep."

She caught a glimpse of both the girls' faces as they instantly shifted from excitement to disappointment.

"Of course," she heard Jessica mutter, knowing the thrill was almost completely gone now. "Don't tell _us_ anything. We're only your best friends." Bella knew she couldn't win, no matter how hard she tried.

Perhaps soon they would learn the whole story. For now, Bella wanted nothing more than to fall upon her bed, close her eyes, and replay the magical - albeit short - moment of intensity that she and Edward had shared.

* * *

**Yes, I've teased you again. I'm sorry, folks. I couldn't resist!**

**Want more? Come play on the Twilighted forum thread where I post teasers: http://www(dot)twilighted(dot)net/forum/viewtopic(dot)php?f=33&t=6993**

**Chapter updates may be slower as I've got various other things going on, but I will try my best. :)  
**


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